Tuesday, February 16, 2021

Waiting to Read Wednesday: Sing Me Forgotten / The Rose Code / Old Man's War


The New
Can't-Wait Wednesday is a weekly feature hosted by the marvelous Tressa at Wishful Endings to spotlight and discuss upcoming release we are excited about that we have yet to read.

I am super excited about both of these upcoming releases. They both sound SO good! 

Sing Me Forgotten
by Jessica S. Olson
Release Date: March 9, 2021 by Inkyard Press
Isda does not exist. At least not beyond the opulent walls of the opera house.

Cast into a well at birth for being one of the magical few who can manipulate memories when people sing, she was saved by Cyril, the opera house’s owner. Since that day, he has given her sanctuary from the murderous world outside. All he asks in return is that she use her power to keep ticket sales high—and that she stay out of sight. For if anyone discovers she survived, Isda and Cyril would pay with their lives.

But Isda breaks Cyril’s cardinal rule when she meets Emeric Rodin, a charming boy who throws her quiet, solitary life out of balance. His voice is unlike any she’s ever heard, but the real shock comes when she finds in his memories hints of a way to finally break free of her gilded prison.

Haunted by this possibility, Isda spends more and more time with Emeric, searching for answers in his music and his past. But the price of freedom is steeper than Isda could ever know. For even as she struggles with her growing feelings for Emeric, she learns that in order to take charge of her own destiny, she must become the monster the world tried to drown in the first place.
[Goodreads Summary] 
Why I want to read this: A gender swap retelling of Phantom of the Opera?!  This is a must read!


The Rose Code
by Kate Quinn
Release Date: March 9, 2021 by William Morrow
The New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of The Huntress and The Alice Network returns with another heart-stopping World War II story of three female code breakers at Bletchley Park and the spy they must root out after the war is over.

1940. As England prepares to fight the Nazis, three very different women answer the call to mysterious country estate Bletchley Park, where the best minds in Britain train to break German military codes. Vivacious debutante Osla is the girl who has everything—beauty, wealth, and the dashing Prince Philip of Greece sending her roses—but she burns to prove herself as more than a society girl, and puts her fluent German to use as a translator of decoded enemy secrets. Imperious self-made Mab, product of east-end London poverty, works the legendary codebreaking machines as she conceals old wounds and looks for a socially advantageous husband. Both Osla and Mab are quick to see the potential in local village spinster Beth, whose shyness conceals a brilliant facility with puzzles, and soon Beth spreads her wings as one of the Park’s few female cryptanalysts. But war, loss, and the impossible pressure of secrecy will tear the three apart.

1947. As the royal wedding of Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip whips post-war Britain into a fever, three friends-turned-enemies are reunited by a mysterious encrypted letter--the key to which lies buried in the long-ago betrayal that destroyed their friendship and left one of them confined to an asylum. A mysterious traitor has emerged from the shadows of their Bletchley Park past, and now Osla, Mab, and Beth must resurrect their old alliance and crack one last code together. But each petal they remove from the rose code brings danger--and their true enemy--closer...
 [Goodreads Summary]
Why I want to read this: This one had me at female code breaker. 


Do Sing Me Forgotten and The Rose Code interest you? What upcoming releases are you looking forward to reading?
 

The Old(er) 
I have an embarrassing number of unread books sitting on the shelves in my personal library. Carole of Carole's Random Life in Books has given me the perfect excuse to spotlight and discuss those neglected books in her Books from the Backlog feature. After all, even those older books need a bit of love! Not to mention it is reminding me what great books I have waiting for me under my own roof still to read!


Old Man's War
(#1) by John Scalzi
(Tor, 2005)
John Perry did two things on his 75th birthday. First he visited his wife's grave. Then he joined the army.

The good news is that humanity finally made it into interstellar space. The bad news is that planets fit to live on are scarce-- and alien races willing to fight us for them are common. So: we fight. To defend Earth, and to stake our own claim to planetary real estate. Far from Earth, the war has been going on for decades: brutal, bloody, unyielding.

Earth itself is a backwater. The bulk of humanity's resources are in the hands of the Colonial Defense Force. Everybody knows that when you reach retirement age, you can join the CDF. They don't want young people; they want people who carry the knowledge and skills of decades of living. You'll be taken off Earth and never allowed to return. You'll serve two years at the front. And if you survive, you'll be given a generous homestead stake of your own, on one of our hard-won colony planets.

John Perry is taking that deal. He has only the vaguest idea what to expect. Because the actual fight, light-years from home, is far, far harder than he can imagine--and what he will become is far stranger. [Goodreads Summary]
Why I want to read this: I purchased this book from Borders (remember that bookstore chain?) in 2009. I am not sure what motivated me to pick it up--my memory on that is fuzzy--but I do know that I have since listened to one of Scalzi's other books and enjoyed it so much that I kept this one on my shelf to read someday. I do not read a lot of science fiction which is a shame because I do enjoy the genre quite a bit when I do. I may have to make time for this one this year. Scalzi is such an entertaining writer. 


Have you read Old Man's War? Does this book sound like something you would like to read? 


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48 comments:

  1. I have a copy of The Rose Code, and I'm really looking forward to reading it. Sing Me Forgotten appeals to me too - I'll look out for it.

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    1. Margaret - I hope we both enjoy The Rose Code. I hope you enjoy Sing Me Forgotten if you decide to read it!

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  2. The Huntress is one of my fave reads last year so I'm really excited to read more from her! I'm really hyped for The Rose Code!!

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    1. Czai - I still haven't read The Huntress, sad to say. I want to though. I just haven't managed it yet. Her books all sound so good!

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  3. Yes, I have read Old Man's War - it was my introduction to Scalzi and I thoroughly enjoyed it:)). I also LOVED the sound of The Rose Code - so much so that I have scampered across to Netgalley to request it. Fingers crossed I get an arc and thank you for sharing, Wendy!

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    1. Sarah - I am glad to hear you enjoyed Old Man's War. I really need to make time for it and soon! I hope you get an ARC of The Rose Code! It does sound good, doesn't it?

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  4. I definitely want to read Old Man's War. John Scalzi has been on my list of authors I want to read for a long long time. I'm not sure why I'm not reading it - I worry it may not meet my very high expectations.

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    1. Athira - Too high of expectations can ruin a book. I've experienced that too. I think it's why I shy away from reading some books by authors I have read and loved before. If you do read Old Man's War, I hope you will enjoy it (and I hope I will too!).

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  5. The Rose Code, yay! As a big Kate Quinn fan I'm HIGHLY anticipating it 💖

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    1. Stephanie - The Rose Code sounds so good. I can't wait to read it! I hope you will enjoy it when you read it too!

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  6. All of these sound good, and Scalzi always gets a positive reception.

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    1. Jenclair - Scalzi does seem to have a good reputation. :-)

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  7. Old Man's War is one of my favorite books and John Scalzi one of my favorite authors! Both upcoming books sound good, too.

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    1. Jan - I'm so glad you love Old Man's War and John Scalzi's books in general. That's good news for me as I dive into his work more. :-)

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  8. This is the third POTO retelling I've seen this year! I love this resurgence. Both of these sound so good. Here is my post- https://paigesofbook.blogspot.com/2021/02/cant-wait-wednesday-like-home.html.

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    1. Steph - I noticed that too! It seems like this is the winter for Phantom of the Opera retellings. Hopefully they will all be good in their own ways.

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  9. I've read Old Man's War! It was years ago but I remember really liking it. :)

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    1. Lark - Yay! I am glad so many people remember liking Old Man's War. :-)

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  10. The Rose Code is on my wishlist too. Happy reading to us all *smile*

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  11. I really want to read Old Man's War, one of these days😁

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    1. Tammy - I'm surprised you haven't. LOL I hope we both enjoy Old Man's War when we do read it!

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  12. Sing Me Forgotten sounds quite interesting. I am looking forward to The Rose Code as well. I am so many older books on my bookshelves at home, I really need to start reading them.

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    1. Carla - Hopefully they will both be good. I have so many older books waiting their turn so patiently, just sitting there on my shelves. Some day, I tell them. Their time will come. :-)

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  13. I've read about John Scalzi but not anything from him, not yet anyway. I heard good things about The Rose code and wow, look at the cover of Sing me forgotten, gorgeous !!

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    1. Iza - Sing Me Forgotten does have a beautiful cover, doesn't it? I am looking forward to reading it and The Rose Code.

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  14. I loved buying books from Borders...and really miss that store. I am curious about your chosen book for the Backlog event...and thanks for visiting my post today.

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    1. Laurel-Rain - I miss Borders too. I used to enjoy browsing the shelves there and sometimes getting a snack for my ride home.

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  15. Female code breakers? Yes, please! The Rose Code sounds like just my cup of tea. And I'm always up for gender-swapped retellings, so Sing Me Forgotten is very appealing to me. Awesome picks! Thanks for sharing! :)

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    1. Ashley - The Rose Code sounds irresistible, doesn't it? I can't wait to read it! Hopefully you will enjoy both The Rose Code and Sing Me Forgotten if you read them (and me too!).

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  16. I love the sound of the magical system in Sign Me Forgotten. I hope you enjoy these reads!

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  17. I had not heard of Sing Me Forgotten but now I want it and I definitely want to read the Kate Quinn.
    LOL, I've got Old Man's War on the shelf, too. I've read a different sci-fi series from him and that made me pick this one up.

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    1. Sophia Rose - I hope you get a chance to read Sing Me Forgotten and we both enjoy them! Same with Old Man's War. :-) Why haven't we read it yet?!

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  18. I have my eye on The Rose Code. I have several Scalzi books but I am not sure if I have this one or not. I hope you enjoy all of these when you get the chance to read them.

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    1. Carole - Doesn't The Rose Code sound good? Scalzi is an author I keep meaning to read more of.

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  19. The Rose Code looks really good. I have to add that to my wishlist.

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    1. Yvonne - I hope you get a chance to read it and we both enjoy it!

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  20. I love the cover for Sing Me Forgotten!

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  21. some great looking books. hope you enjoy them
    sherry @ fundinmental

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